Unlike the incumbent U.S. Senator he defeated in last night’s Republican primary, Richard Mourdock is a genuine climate skeptic. During a conference call organized by Americans for Limited Government (ALG), Mourdock commented the science of climate change and how it is attached to the big government agenda advanced through the United Nations.

He also responded to remarks made by Defense Secretary Leon Panetta earlier this month during a reception held for the Environmental Defense Fund. Panetta told audience members that climate change was a potential national security threat.

“The irony here is that our energy policy is in fact a threat to our national security,” said Mourdock. “We are basing our energy policy on the greatest hoax of all time, which is that mankind is changing the climate.”

Mourdock also expressed opposition to the Law of Sea Treaty, which Panetta advocated in his speech. Proponents claim that it would grant the U.S. greater access to sea lanes and head off international disputes. Mourdock is opposed because in his view it would empower UN bureaucrats and prevent the U.S. from acting unilaterally in its own best interests.

During his time in office, incumbent Sen. Richard Lugar was supportive of Law of Sea Treaty and other UN initiatives that antagonized Tea Party activists. The regulatory schemes that are likely to flow out of the upcoming UN Conference on Sustainable Development in Rio de Janeiro could play to Mourdock’s advantage.